The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) believes that one of the possible causes of the collapse of the Cabagan-Santa Maria Bridge in Isabela may be overloading.
In an interview during Dos Por Dos on Friday, DPWH Secretary Manuel Banoan mentioned that a convoy of trucks carrying boulders, weighing about 100 tons, passed over the bridge, noting that the structure was designed to carry only around 44 tons.
Bonoan also added that signages on both sides of the bridge indicated that only light vehicles were allowed to use it.
"Kung controlled yung 44 tons na yan ang buhay ng isang tulay na sinasabi namin, at least aabot ng 30 years," said Bonoan.
"Kaya lang, kung parating na-ooverload yung tulay, iiksi rin yung buhay nung tulay," he added.
Bonoan stressed that the bridge project has not yet been turned over to the government and is still under the contractor's responsibility.
"Hindi pa natuturn over sa gobyerno 'to, it's in the process, 'yung final testing, dapat i-turn over sa gobyerno 'to. As I am saying, nasa puder pa rin ng kontraktor ito," said Banoan.
Meanwhile, the DPWH stated that they would investigate the cause of the collapse of one segment of the bridge, which measures "only 60 meters." They will also check if other segments of the bridge were compromised.
"Nagpapatulong rin kami sa Association of Structural Engineers of the Philippines para tulungan kami at mag-assist kung ano ba yung dapat gawin sa pagrehabilitate nung tulay," said the DPWH secretary.
The bridge was designed by a local consulting firm, with its initial construction starting in late 2014, with a total cost of P1.2 billion. The structure later underwent retrofitting for earthquake safety and additional features.
On February 27, it unfortunately collapsed, just the same month it was opened to the public.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered an investigation into potential corruption in the construction of the said bridge.
Today, Marcos personally visited Isabela to inspect the incident. He claimed that the bridge project’s budget was cut from its supposed P1.8 billion to just P1 billion.
